Elder Maeve kneels beside the collapsed wolfkin messenger, her healing magic glowing with desperate intensity. But even her considerable power cannot repair the extensive damage. Deep claw marks rake across his chest, one eye swollen completely shut, fur matted with blood that speaks of a desperate flight through hostile territory. The gathering hut that moments ago rang with laughter and celebration now holds only the sound of labored breathing and rising panic.
The contrast is so stark it feels like stepping from one world into another—from light into darkness, from hope into despair.
When someone presses a cup of water to his lips, he drinks greedily before continuing his report in a voice hoarse from screaming warnings to every settlement he could reach.
"Southern defense line... completely overrun," he gasps, listing village names that draw gasps of horror from the crowd. "Fortress watchtowers... burning like torches. Demon forces... moving faster than anyone expected. They don't stop to rest, don't pause to loot. They just... destroy everything."
"How long do we have?" Papa's voice cuts through the rising panic with the authority of leadership.
The messenger's answer sends ice through my veins: "Less than a candle mark. They move like the wind itself—faster than any army should. It's as if the darkness carries them forward."
The gathering hut erupts in chaos as the reality settles in. Voices overlap in cacophony, children begin to cry, the ordered celebration dissolving into terror. But through it all, the village elders' training shows as they begin shouting evacuation protocols that have been drilled but never used.
"Listen to me!" Papa's voice cuts through the chaos. "Everyone who cannot fight—children, elderly, those caring for them—take the northern routes immediately. Move in small groups, don't wait for others. Warriors form defensive positions at the main bridges."
The evacuation begins with urgent necessity. There's no time for careful organization—people grab what they can carry and flee. Some take the rope bridges north, others the canopy paths east, families splitting in the chaos as they seek any route to safety.
"I need volunteers to help guide the children's groups," Leira calls out, her warrior's instincts overriding protocol. "They'll never make it alone in this panic."
Several adults step forward, and I watch as they begin shepherding confused, terrified children toward the safest paths.
"What?" Kyo's voice rises in protest when Papa grabs his shoulder. "You're sending me away? I'm eighteen, I can fight!"
"I can fight!" he insists, gripping his spear with white knuckles. "I won't run while our home burns!"
"Your duty is to survive. Both of you," Papa's response is firm and final. "The village will mean nothing if our young people die with it."
The words carry not just command but the pain of a father who knows he may never see his children again. As Papa embraces us one last time, his hands lingered on our faces as if trying to memorize every detail.
"Protect your brother," he tells me quietly. "Remember who you are, no matter what happens."
I understand the weight of these words—a father preparing his daughter for a world where he might not be there to guide her.
The warning horns sound from the southern watchtowers—long, mournful notes that have not been heard in living memory. They cut through the evacuation preparations like a blade that freezes everyone in place before galvanizing us into action.
Distant screams carry through the forest, growing closer with terrifying speed. The first visual sign of the attack is an orange glow through the trees as fire spreads from platform to platform.
The first evacuation groups begin moving north via rope bridges and elevated forest paths. Families clutch children and bundles of possessions as they flee toward uncertain safety. The orderly retreat quickly becomes a stream of refugees moving through the canopy.
Through the trees, I catch my first glimpse of a demon. Humanoid but wrong—too tall with limbs that bend at unnatural angles, pale skin with dark veins clearly visible, multiple eyes glowing red as it moves with fluid speed.
The creature isn't just destroying; it's hunting, tracking fleeing villagers with predatory intelligence that makes my stomach clench with terror.
Village warriors form defensive lines at key bridges and chokepoints, their faces grim with the knowledge that they are buying time with their lives. I watch Papa take his position among them, my heart breaking as I see him transform from celebrating father to community leader.
I grabbed my sword from the weapon racks as I moved toward my assigned group.
As I watched Papa take his position with the other warriors, I understood that my father was choosing to die so that Kyo and I might live.
I followed my evacuation group across a series of rope bridges. Then I heard the sound that would haunt my nightmares forever—Leira's war cry cutting through the chaos.
She's with one of the children's groups, helping them cross the main evacuation bridge when the demons arrived faster than anyone anticipated.
A massive demon beast crashed through the trees with the sound of splintering wood. The creature was bear-like but corrupted beyond recognition—exposed bone and muscle glistening wetly, acidic saliva dripping from its maw, multiple limbs sprouting from its back.
It targeted the fleeing children with deliberate malice. Its roar froze several children in place with pure terror.
Leira didn't hesitate. She charged the beast with her spear, her war cry cutting through the children's screams as she placed herself between the monster and its intended victims. Her attack managed to wound the creature and draw its attention away from the helpless.
But courage wasn't enough against such overwhelming force.
The beast's claws caught her mid-leap even as she managed to throw her spear with perfect accuracy, severing the bridge supports and sending the structure crashing down behind the children, cutting off the demon's pursuit.
I watched in horror as both Leira and the beast disappeared into the canopy below. There's no time to mourn because more demons were approaching and the evacuation must continue.
The evacuation route reached a major junction where multiple paths diverged through the canopy. Too many people tried to cross at once, the bridges groaning under the weight of refugees as the careful organization broke down.
A pack of demon hunters appeared—sleek, wolf-like creatures moving with terrifying coordination. They weren't attacking randomly but herding the evacuees, cutting off escape routes and driving us toward some predetermined trap.
In the chaos, I spotted a safer path that could save Kyo's group, but taking it would mean separation in the darkness and confusion. The decision had to be made instantly with no time for discussion.
I made the choice that would haunt me forever.
I literally pushed Kyo toward the safer group while I drew the demons' attention with noise and movement. He stumbled, grimacing as his weight landed on the ankle that was twisted this morning, but the flight had reaggravated the injury. His protests were heartbreaking: "I won't leave you! We stay together!"
"I'm right behind you," I lied, knowing it wasn't true even as I said it. "Go! Now!"
I deliberately made myself a target, shouting and waving to draw the demon pack's attention away from the children's group. The last glimpse I had of my brother was his terrified face as older villagers pulled him away, limping but moving as fast as he could manage, his hand reaching toward me across the growing distance.
Then I was running in the opposite direction with three demon wolves in pursuit. Their howls echoed through the burning forest as they chased their new prey. I understood with crystal clarity that I might have just saved my brother's life by sacrificing my own.
What followed was a deadly game of cat and mouse through the forest canopy. I used every bit of my woodland knowledge and feline agility to stay ahead of creatures that were faster and stronger than I was. I leaped between branches while my tail provided the balance that kept me from falling to my death.
The demon wolves were incredibly fast, but they weren't familiar with the intricate layout of the forest paths. I used this to my advantage, leading them through thorn barriers and angry wasp nests and across a ravine using vines that required precise timing and perfect balance.
When cornered in a small clearing, I was forced to fight. My sword work was effective enough to wound one wolf badly. The creatures were relentless and I was rapidly tiring from the extended chase.
I literally crashed into Kai in another small clearing, both of us bloodied and exhausted from our separate battles. The moment of reunion was electric with relief—neither of us was alone anymore.
"The eastern route," he gasped, favoring his left leg where claw marks showed through torn clothing. "Cut off. Half our people..." He shook his head, unable to finish.
His spear was broken and reduced to little more than a sharp stick.
We could hear pursuit closing in from multiple directions as the net tightened and our options rapidly disappeared.
"The old hunter's path," he gasped, pointing toward what was barely more than animal tracks through dense undergrowth. "It's our only chance."
I nodded agreement.
We moved together, watching each other's backs and sharing the burden of exhaustion. In a brief moment of tenderness, he touched the pendant at my neck and managed a sad smile.
"At least you're wearing it," he said, words that carried the weight of love and loss and the knowledge that we might not survive the night.
Our flight ended in a grove of ancient trees where we were ambushed by forces that had been tracking us. This wasn't a chance encounter but a carefully planned trap.
The demon commander that emerged from the shadows was different from the beasts we'd encountered. More human-like in appearance but somehow more terrifying for that resemblance. It wore corrupted armor that seemed alive, shifting and breathing with its movements, carrying a blade that dripped with darkness.
"Two little cats, far from home," it said in accented common tongue, its voice carrying mockery and casual cruelty.
The fact that it could speak, that it chose to taunt us, made it infinitely more frightening than the mindless beasts we'd been fleeing.
The fight was hopeless before it began—the commander flanked by four demon soldiers with weapons and armor. But Kai pushed me behind him anyway, raising his broken spear.
"Stay back," he told me, his voice steady despite our hopeless situation. "If you get a chance to run, take it."
The commander toyed with him at first, clearly enjoying the futility of human resistance. It easily avoided Kai's attacks while inflicting small wounds that weakened without killing. But somehow Kai managed to surprise everyone with a charge that actually scored a hit, his blade penetrating the commander's armor and drawing black blood.
The demon's retaliation was swift and brutal. Its blade pierced Kai's chest with surgical precision, finding the gap between ribs to penetrate vital organs. But he didn't fall immediately—instead, he used his last strength to grab the demon's arm, preventing it from withdrawing the weapon.
"RUN!" he shouted at me, his voice carrying all the love he'd never been able to express. "Live for both of us!"
I saw him mouth words that might be "I love you" or might be "Remember me" before the demon commander twisted the blade with casual cruelty. His scream of agony broke my paralysis, sending me running with tears streaming down my face and his cries echoing behind me.
I ran until my legs gave out and my lungs burned with each breath. I collapsed near a small stream as the full weight of my losses crashed down on me. Papa, Kyo, Kai, Leira—my entire community erased in a single night, everyone I'd ever loved gone or lost beyond my reach.
I tried to drink from the stream, but my hands shook so violently I could barely cup the water. My sword slipped from numb fingers, clattering onto the stones beside me as the physical exhaustion combined with emotional devastation left me barely functional.
The pendant bounced against my chest with each ragged breath, a tangible reminder of love and sacrifice that both comforted and tormented me. I clutched it like a lifeline while sobs racked my body and the sound of distant destruction continued to echo through the forest.
The sound of human voices initially brought a flicker of relief—perhaps soldiers, or other survivors. But as the voices grew closer, I recognized them as the suspicious "bird hunters" who were seen near the forest before the attack. My heart sank as I realized these weren't rescuers but opportunists.
Two men emerged from the trees, surprised but pleased to find me. One was tall and broad-shouldered with weathered skin and cruel eyes. The other was shorter but stockier with a scraggly beard and predatory grin.
"Well, look what we have here," the taller one said with satisfaction that made my skin crawl. "A stray kitten, all alone."
I scrambled to my feet, trying to run, but my exhausted body couldn't respond quickly enough. A dart hit my neck with a sharp, sudden sting that sent numbness spreading through my limbs.
I managed a few steps while my mind screamed for my legs to move faster, but the tranquilizer's magic took hold and consciousness slipped away as I collapsed.
Through dimming vision, I watched helplessly as the taller man picked up my sword—the blade I'd trained with since childhood. He examined it with professional interest before sliding it into his belt like another piece of loot.
The shorter man leaned over me, and I felt his rough fingers at my throat. "What's this?" Through the growing darkness, I saw him pull Kai's pendant from my neck, the leather cord snapping easily. "Might be worth a few coppers."
The last thing I heard was his voice continuing: "Told you this chaos would be profitable. She'll fetch a fine price—look at those ears, that tail, those eyes. Premium beast-woman stock."
I understood as darkness claimed me that I was no longer a person but property, no longer Leiko but just another piece of merchandise to be sold.
Darkness took me as the world I knew died in flames behind me.